Hate Crimes

In New York someone attacked a cab driver, allegedly because the driver was a Muslim.  There is a question of whether this is a hate crime.

The Trouble With Kids These Days

The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.

Burn a Koran Day

In Gainesville, Florida, there is a Christian pastor named Terry Jones who plans to hold a "Burn a Koran Day" on September 11.  The fun never stops.

Is Obama a Muslim?

For reasons that escape my feeble grasp, fully 20% of the people in the United States think that President Obama is a Muslim.  I hope these aren't the people who do the voting.

Ground Zero Mosque

There has been endless arguing over whether a proposed "supermosque" should be allowed to be built a short distance from Ground Zero.  The thinking seems to be that this is some sort of Islamic plot or something.  That misses the point.

Mayan Calendar

A lot of people are concerned that the world is going to end on December 21, 2012 (give or take).  They reason that the Mayan calendar ends on that day - or perhaps the day before.  Once the calendar ends, that's all she wrote.  The world comes crashing down around our heads.

This is fucking stupid.

Put the Commas In

Journalists, when you're writing largish numbers (that would be numbers with more than four digits), would you *PUHLEEZ* put the fucking commas in?  I can't tell the difference between 300000 and 3000000 or even 30000000.  Come on, how hard would it be to put in a comma every three digits?

Didn't your teachers ever tell you about that stuff?

Steps to Prevent Foreclosure

The Obama administration is seeking to find ways to prevent foreclosures among homeowners who have lost their jobs.  The feeling is that these homeowners are unable to pay their mortgages through no fault of their own, so should not be penalized by losing their homes.  A noble, compassionate sentiment, to be sure.

More Heat Than Light

The chairman of the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Rajendra Pachauri, has allegedly said that global warming skeptics should rub their faces with asbestos every morning.  I gather Mr. Pachauri is not fond of global warming skeptics.

A Big Fucking Deal

The media are all atwitter over a comment made by our Vice President.  According to one source, Biden told Obama that the Health Care Reform Act was a "Big [Expletive] Deal".  Another source reported that Biden "dropped the F-bomb".  Using my superior powers of analysis and deduction, I conclude that Mr. Biden said, "This is a big fucking deal".

To which I say, "big fucking deal".  People swear.  Even vice presidents swear.  Hell, our President probably swears while he's out behind the White House sneaking a smoke.

A Ticket For Rush

A Website called 'aticketforrush.com' is trying to help Rush Limbaugh collect enough money to pay for air fare to Costa Rica.  Apparently Mr. Limbaugh said he'd go to Costa Rica if the US ever passed the health reform bill.  Now that this bill has passed, the Website has stepped up.

Don't Be Evil

The New York Times reports that Google is redirecting Internet traffic in China to uncensored sites, and removing itself from China.  Bravo.

Openly Gay

There appears to be a shift in how the military will be viewing gay people.  It may be that instead of the "don't ask, don't tell" rule, the military will no longer reject or punish those who are openly gay.  This is progress, but it raises a question.  What is "openly gay"?

In Hot Water

James A. Ray, whose catastrophic sweat lodge ritual killed three people on October 8 of last year, has been indicted for manslaughter.  This might actually be a good thing.

Lancet Backtracks

In 1998, Andrew Wakefield, MD, published an article in the prestigious British medical journal Lancet, allegedly claiming there was a connection between the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine for children, and the occurrence of autism.  Twelve years later, Lancet has retracted this article.

Groundhog Day

Yet again we consult the mystical rodent known only as Punxsutawney Phil, a rodent who has apparently lived for over 100 years.  He, and apparently only he, can tell us whether winter will continue for another six weeks.

Unclear On the Concept

Scott Roeder is on trial for the murder of George Tiller, M.D.  Dr. Tiller was an abortion provider.  Mr. Roder claims to be a Christian.  He has no regrets at having murdered Dr. Tiller, since the doctor was killing unborn children.  Roeder felt he had to take action to save the lives of other unborn children.

The First Casualty of War

Reuters reports that Hamas claims it killed Israeli citizens "accidentally", and are therefore innocent of war crimes.  Without wishing to burden the discussion with too many technical terms, this claim is bullshit.

Why Is Obama 'Black'?

TV host Chris Matthews is apparently in hot water for making the comment, "I forgot that Obama is Black".  I'm not exactly sure what the big deal is.  As far as I can see, it's just another case of hysterics when some public figure mentions race.  In this case, I agree with Mr. Matthews.  It's easy to forget that Obama is Black.  In fact, I wonder why he's considered "Black".

Paying Off the Taliban

Telegraph.co.uk published an article that discusses how NATO is going to pay the Taliban millions of dollars for some reason.  The logic behind this move has so far eluded my feeble grasp.  Call me crazy, but I thought that when you're having a war with someone, you weren't supposed to give them millions of dollars.

Into the Wild Blue Yonder

On January 14th, a bag of cocaine was found in the hangar where the Space Shuttle lives.  As might be expected, this has caused some consternation among NASA officials, as well as the hysterical public.

Ignorance and Arrogance

Today Haiti had a serious earthquake that has taken the lives of thousands of people.  Some estimates go as high as 100,000 lives lost.  Whatever the final toll, Haiti is in a world of hurt right now, people suffering and dying, without shelter, food, clean water, or other necessities.  Many world governments and organizations are chipping in to help the people of Haiti.

And then you've got that paragon of Christian virtue, Pat Robertson.

Exit the Dragon

A Washington Post article states that Google is considering discontinuing its services in China.  If Google actually follows through with this, it would be the first large company to stand up to China and resist some of its unreasonable demands.

Casualties of War and Peace

Since the beginning of hostilities in Agfghanistan, we have lost 1,582 soldiers (link).  In Iraq, we've lost 4,373 soldiers (link).  That's about 5,955 soldiers killed.  Let's round it to an even 6,000, in case we've missed some.  Six thousand soldiers killed since we began fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq.  These are the casualties of war, soldiers who gave their lives for their country.  This is a tragedy.  But we are faced with an even sadder tragedy, the casualties of peace.

Ecoterrorism

According to published reports, a Japanese whaling vessel collided with a speedboat owned by the environmental group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS).  The speedboat, named the Ady Gil, sustained "catastrophic" damage and may be a total loss.  The head of the SSCS, Paul Wilson, complained that his vessel was deliberately rammed by the whaling boat.

The Terrorists Have Won

If the goal of terrorism is to instill fear into an enemy, then the terrorists have won, no question about it.  A recent news article describes an incident in California where a piece of luggage set off an alarm in the baggage screening area.  Some bottles of a suspicious-looking liquid were found.  Two people who opened the bottles smelled some sort of chemical odor.  They became ill and were sent to the hospital.  After being checked out, they were released.